Turner, Mizzou D-Line hoping to wreak havoc in trenches

Tuesday

Aug 13, 2019 at 6:45 PMAug 13, 2019 at 11:05 PM

Mention "D-Line Zou" to Missouri junior defensive end Chris Turner and you might get a smile.

But then again you may not.

While the Tigers’ defense recorded only 27 total sacks in 2018, an average of just over two per game, Turner knows that for Missouri to be successful this season that number has to go up — not just for him but for the team as well.

“If you watched my pass rush last year it wasn’t the best at all so that was one of my biggest focuses in the offseason and over the summer,” Turner said. “D-Line Zou is our thing so if we don’t play up to the standard, we are letting down the players that came before us.”

In 13 games last year for the Tigers, Turner finished with 24 tackles, including 3 1/2 tackles for loss and two quarterback sacks. He also added four quarterback pressures and twice had a season-best four tackles, coming against Kentucky and at Florida.

Missouri defensive line coach Brick Haley said Turner has improved since last year.

“I am so pleased with the progress he has made, but he is just a steady guy,” Haley said. “He is steady all the time. He is going to be where he is supposed to be, he is going to do what he is supposed to, and he is going to play hard. He is not a flashy guy but the thing that impresses me the most is him as a person.”

Turner also buckled down in the classroom last year. He was named to the 2018 SEC Academic Honor Roll.

“He’s steady Eddie, he’s where he’s supposed to be, when he’s supposed to be there,” Walters said. “Now, it’s trying to get him to take the next step and cut it loose and know when he can go and take his shot and things like that. He’s been a good leader by example for us.”

Turner was definitely one of the leaders on defense Tuesday during Missouri's practice at the Kadlec Practice Fields. Against the Tigers' No. 1 offense, Turner and Co. managed to win its share of the battles during the two-hour session.

“Of course that’s our goal every day,” Turner said. “That’s what we do, we stop the offense. Honestly, it’s the best part of practice because we have our best on best and we are competing against each other and having fun and doing what we love.”

The love for the game the defensive linemen have has caught the attention of Haley and Walters.

“I see a lot of improvement from last year to this year,” Haley said of the defensive line. “Impressed with them, no. I want them to continue to work. I don’t want them to the point where they got big heads and thinking, OK, I’m not making mistakes, I’m not doing this and I am not doing that. I want them playing hard every day.

“I want them hungry every day, I want them to come out every day and feel like there is something they can still accomplish. They want to accomplish something every day and set goals in the meeting room before we walk out on the field, and then at the end of practice look back and see if we accomplished those goals.”

Turner said everybody has goals, including himself. He said every year he sits down and lists his goals for the year.

“I’m not going to tell you what they are,” Turner said with a laugh. “Honestly, we are a team so all I am focused on right now is growing as a person and helping my teammates grow as a team. I know I need to be more physical and grow up and mature a lot, and I feel like I have in a bunch of ways. I just need to take things more seriously and work and just trust myself more.”

A graduate of Hammond High School in Louisiana, Turner said the plan every day is to go out and have a better day than the last.

“Coach (Barry) Odom was saying that today the team has to be our best day in practice and we really enforce that in our defensive unit meeting,” Turner said. “We kind of have a persona for ourselves. We call it the dark side and they said put that mask on and come out here and go to work and that’s what we try to do.”

If Tuesday’s practice was any indication, D-Line Zou may be back to put a smile on Turner’s face for the 2019 season.

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